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Arsenal secured an important 2-1 win away at Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Tuesday, January 30.
The hosts entered this game on the back of two wins across their last five games, including a massive 2-1 win over Manchester United at home. Newly-appointed manager Nuno Espirito Santo's men played out a goalless draw against Bristol City in the FA Cup 4th Round in their last game. Sixteenth in the PL, they were looking for a positive result.
The Gunners, on the other hand, lost three of their last five games and were desperate for a win. Their last game was an encouraging 5-0 demolition of Crystal Palace and were looking to replicate that against Forest. They were third in the table prior to kick-off, behind Manchester City, and knew a win would take them up to second.
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Arsenal made a great start to the game and absolutely dominated Nottingham Forest in the first half. With 81% of the ball, the Gunners looked to push forward and open the scoring early, but were wasteful in front of goal. They attempted nine first-half shots but hit the target just once, that too with their last attempt before the interval.
The Gunners got into some great areas but lacked the finishing touch which could have seen them score three or four in the first half. Their defence looked solid, though, setting up a strong foundation to be built upon in the second period.
Arsenal and Nottingham Forest were deadlocked at 0-0 at the break.
The Gunners came out for the second half with one thing clearly dominant on their mind - scoring goals. Striker Gabriel Jesus opened the scoring for Arsenal in the 65th minute with a smart finish. Oleksandr Zinchenko assisted his goal with a nice pass. As they do so often, Mikel Arteta's men struck again just seven minutes later, with Jesus assisting Bukayo Saka to make it 2-0.
Arsenal backed off considerably in the second half, allowing Nottingham Forest to keep the ball and come at them. The hosts had 33% of the ball in the second half compared to a meagre 19% in the first, attempting seven shots with three on target. Forest even grabbed a late consolation goal as Taiwo Awoniyi converted Gonzalo Montiel's cross in the 89th minute.
However, it was too little and way too late as the Gunners ran out 2-1 winners. On that note, let's take a look at the five hits and flops from the game.
#5. Hit - Taiwo Awoniyi (Nottingham Forest)
Nigerian marksman Taiwo Awoniyi came on as a half-time substitute for Chris Wood, who had a first half to forget. In his 45 minutes on the pitch, the Nigerian made a decent impact and even walked away with a late consolation goal.
Awoniyi had just 15 touches of the ball since coming on but attempted three shots, with two of those on target. He also won both his aerial duels and scored by holding off William Saliba, before turning and shooting. Having already scored at the Emirates Stadium earlier this season, Awoniyi made it a deserved double against the Gunners tonight.
#4. Flop - Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal)
Once again, Gabriel Martinelli continued his hot and cold streak for Arsenal. Having scored a brace against Palace, many expected Martinelli to have another good game. However, he struggled and attempted just one shot in his 78 minutes on the pitch. He also played zero key passes and won just three of his 10 duels.
Moreover, Martinelli was also dispossessed 13 times and mostly stayed upfield on the left wing, reluctant to drop deep and facilitate play for his teammates. The Brazilian will need to add layers to his game to be able to contribute without getting on the scoresheet.
#3. Hit - Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
Bukayo Saka had a great game and even got on the scoresheet with a calm finish in the second period. Arsenal broke forward in transition midway through the second half with Gabriel Jesus leading the charge on the left flank. He spotted Saka's run on the other side and switched play with a swift pass across the turf.
The Englishman attacked the ball, took a cushioning touch, and fired it into the bottom-right corner with a great finish. This made it 10+ goals and 10+ assists for the second season running for Saka. He is the first player to do so for the Gunners since Alexis Sanchez between 2014-17.
#2. Flop - Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest)
Morgan Gibbs-White had a poor game by his standards and was effectively phased out of the contest by the Gunners' midfield.
He had just 39 touches of the ball and completed just 15 passes. Gibbs-White was dispossessed 14 times and he won just one of his nine duels in a rather disappointing outing for a central midfielder.
#1. Hit - Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal)
Gabriel Jesus' quality shone through as he bagged a goal and an assist en-route to leading Arsenal to victory. This makes it a total of seven goals and four assists in 22 appearances across competitions this season. Jesus will surely look to add to that tally by the end of the campaign.
Jesus received the ball with his back to goal in the first half and made a sharp turn to get goalside. He was almost hugging the byline, but still managed to squeeze the ball past former Gunner Matt Turner in goal to make it 1-0. Shortly after, he provided an assist for Saka.
